A former Marion County Sheriff's Office deputy who has been accused of beating a Marion Oaks man last year during a drug-related arrest has been indicted by a federal grand jury.

By Austin L. MillerStaff writer

A federal grand jury has indicted a former Marion County Sheriff's deputy accused of beating a Marion Oaks man during a 2014 drug arrest.

Jesse Alan Terrell, 33, is the fifth deputy to be prosecuted in the case. The other four already have pleaded guilty in federal court.

Terrell is charged with violating the civil rights of Derrick Price by using excessive force during the arrest. The indictment was announced by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, and U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida.

The indictment states that Terrell "repeatedly struck, kneed, and kicked (Price) in the head, neck, and shoulder area, causing bodily injury.”

Terrell faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The State Attorney's Office on Wednesday released videos that show the violent arrest.

The next step: Terrell will receive a summons to appear in court. At court, Terrell will enter a plea and, based on his plea, the judge will determine what happens next.

Terrell's attorney, Charles Holloman, said the indictment “doesn't come as a shock to us because the government had told us that was the direction they were heading. They told us that awhile back, and they shared with us their perception of the facts of the case and therefore we assumed they presented that perception to the grand jury.”

The attorney said his client had received a letter on Jan. 20 from the Justice Department as an invitation to appear in front of the grand jury, but respectfully declined to do so.

Holloman said in the case of a federal grand jury, the attorney is not allowed to go inside the courtroom. He said whatever question or questions his client may have had, his client would have been able to step outside and consult with him.

As for the next step, Holloman said, “We prefer to just wait and see what's next.”

Holloman said Terrell is taking the news “very well” and is “looking forward for his day in court.” Holloman said there is still an active negotiation going on between himself and federal officials, and he is “very pleased with that.”

Terrell was suspended from the Sheriff's Office and later fired in connection with the case.

The four other former deputies --- Cody Hoppel, Adam Crawford, James Amidei and Trevor Fitzgerald --- have pleaded guilty in connection with the beating of the 44-year-old Price. They await sentencing.

Price's arrest was part of an operation by members of the Unified Drug Enforcement Strike Team, with assistance from sheriff's and Ocala Police Department's SWAT teams. They simultaneously served arrest warrants at five residential properties.

Drug agents said at the time that Price was believed to be a ringleader. Drug agents said that as they approached his home, 13785 SW 42nd Court Road, Price spotted them on surveillance video and ran.

Price ran to a location less than five miles from his residence where, officials said, he surrendered. When the deputies reached him, government officials said, Price was beaten.

The arrest was recorded by a surveillance video camera stationed between a realty company and Marion Oaks Optical off Marion Oaks Boulevard. The footage, authorities said, showed Price was beaten as he surrendered.

Within days of the Sheriff's Office obtaining a copy of the video, Sheriff Chris Blair suspended the men without pay and turned the case over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The State Attorney's Office got involved and the case was then referred to the FBI and Justice Department.

The videos released Wednesday by the State Attorney's Office show Price, dressed in dark pants and a white T-shirt, running into the parking lot and putting his hands in the air. He lies down on his stomach with his hands out in surrender.

A pickup comes in right behind Price and, as soon as it stops, the deputies jump out. When they reached Price, three begin kneeing and punching him in his side and upper body.

Blair issued a statement Wednesday that stated, in part, that the actions of the five individuals shown on the video violated the oath of office they took to serve and protect citizens and compromised the integrity of the badge.

"The abusive and unprofessional actions they displayed shocked me to my core and there was absolutely no hesitation for me to immediately inform the Florida Department of Law Enforcement of their actions, to immediately suspend those former deputies without pay and, ultimately, to request their resignation and/or termination,” Blair stated.

“I ask our community now to not let the actions of the few define the actions of all. We have 700+ employees who have dedicated themselves to our community and they will remain steadfast in their mission to serve Marion County citizens with honor and protect them with pride," he added.

The sheriff also released a video later in the day, in which he remarked: “My challenge now as your sheriff is to do everything humanly possible to prevent this from happening again. We have implemented new civil rights training, combined with several weeks of communications training, for all of our deputies. Additionally, training for our new deputies has been extended by four weeks to further educate them on how to handle potential incidents they may face while on the road. We have also initiated a body camera pilot program to further enhance the transparency of our agency and investigate if such a program would meet our needs. We hold regular town hall meetings and have met with community leaders - especially about this issue - to get their advice and counsel on how we can best serve the citizens of Marion County."

The drug case against Price remains ongoing, according to court records. Michael Barbarette, Price's attorney, declined to comment on Wednesday.

Amidei, who stood by during the beating, was a member of the Fugitive Apprehension Unit. Crawford was a member of the Tactical Intervention Unit. Fitzgerald, who sat on the Price's legs, was a member of the Unified Drug Enforcement Strike Team. Hoppel was a SWAT Team and TIU deputy. Terrel was SWAT Team and patrol deputy.

The Fugitive Apprehension and Tactical Intervention units were created by Blair to fight crime.

According to their personnel records, Amidei and Terrell are military veterans. Terrell, Crawford, Fitzgerald and Hoppel, had disciplinary infractions on record, but they were minor. They had received multiple commendations, including awards for being top producers and Eagle Eye award winners. Supervisors described Fitzgerald and Hoppel as self-motivated or extremely motivated and as team players. Amidei had no disciplinary infractions. His last evaluation described him as a hard worker and reliable. He was picked to join the FAU because of his strong work ethic and integrity.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118 or austin.miller@starbanner.com.

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